If you own a restaurant, you probably already know that your customers often make use of online review websites when deciding where to eat. You have already set up a Tripadvisor profile and have collected a few reviews from your previous customers. But are you really using the Tripadvisor website to its full potential?
Optimising your TripAdvisor listing is a valuable way to ensure that your restaurant appeals to more diners and attracts more business. So how can you make the most of TripAdvisor? Here are some valuable tips:
Officially Confirm Your Restaurant’s Information
Are the details on your Tripadvisor listing, such as address, telephone number, contact email and Restaurant Website, all correct? Make sure that you register as an owner on the TripAdvisor website so that you can confirm them. Once you have registered, you will be able to double check and confirm all of the details, including your restaurant’s email, address, phone number and the links to your website. If you need to make any edits at this point, they can be made at the Management Centre. Because you are the official representative of the business you will be able to override any existing content that already exists on the website.
Get Your Restaurant on the Map
Tripadvisor has a map function that will allow you to pinpoint where your restaurant is located. This will make it a lot easier for your customers to find you. Check to make sure that your listing is showing the right location – if necessary you can update it through the Management Centre. In order to do this you will need to know the latitude and longitude of your restaurant, which you can find by using Google or Bing maps and looking at the location of your business.
Upload Videos and Photos
Adding photos and videos to your listing will help to engage travellers and show them what you have to offer. A mouth-watering picture of your signature dish can get their stomachs grumbling and make them more likely to come in for a meal. Once you register as an owner you will be able to upload an unlimited amount of images, including pictures of your food and beverages or photos that give potential diners a glimpse into the atmosphere of the restaurant. Make sure that you choose one of the best photos as a primary photo, in order to make a strong impression with your potential visitors.
Add a TripAdvisor Widget to Your Website
Another great way that you can make the most of Tripadvisor is to add a widget to your website that will link your visitors to your TripAdvisor listing. There are widgets that will showcase your latest reviews, while also encouraging guests to write new reviews. These widgets are free on the Tripadvisor website and you can find them by going to “Free Tools” on the menu on the top of the page and selecting “Widgets for Your Website”.
Reply to All Reviews in a Constructive and Professional Way
It is very important to respond to your reviews constructively and professionally – when you don’t respond to the comments it will appear that you don’t care enough about your customers. If a customer gives you a negative review make sure that you don’t respond by getting angry and defensive. Calmly address the concerns of the customer and offer a resolution for their issue. When other customers read this exchange, it will show them that you have excellent customer service skills and you are able to deal with customer issues in a helpful way.
It is also important to reply to positive reviews as well. You don’t want to ignore these guests, since they had such a great experience they have the potential to recommend your business to others. Make sure that you thank them for taking the time to review your business.
These are just a few of the ways that your restaurant can make the most of Tripadvisor and enjoy the benefits that this review website can offer. Making sure that you have a well-established presence on Tripadvisor and that you are using your profile to its full potential will help you to draw more business to your Restaurant Website.